Oil prices edged up on Friday and are likely to rise for a third consecutive week as better-than-anticipated economic figures from China and claims of record oil consumption strengthened the belief that demand in the second-largest consumer of crude oil will continue to soar.

Brent crude added 0.7%, to $94.35 per barrel, meanwhile US WTI advanced 0.7%, at $90.83 per barrel.

In August, China's industrial output and retail sales expanded more quickly than anticipated, suggesting that the world's second-largest economy is beginning to stabilize after a months-long decline.

A record 64.69 million tonnes of oil were processed at refineries in August, according to data from the National Bureau issued on Friday. This is an increase of 19.6% from the same month in the previous year, or 15.23 million barrels per day (bpd).

As Chinese processors maintained high run rates to fulfill summer travel demand and take advantage of expanding margins for exporting to Asian consumers, refining throughput increased.

The International Energy Agency stated this week that it anticipates a market deficit through the fourth quarter as a result of Saudi Arabia and Russia's prolonged oil supply restrictions.